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Light art

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The Light Inside by James Turrell
Ocupante by Grimanesa Amorós
Interior of Santa Maria Annunciata in Chiesa Rossa light installation by Dan Flavin
Photogram by László Moholy-Nagy, 1923
Solid Light Works by Anthony McCall
"I followed you into the water knowing I would never return" by Tracey Emin
Scrim Veil—Black Rectangle—Natural Light by Robert Irwin
Projection mapping (San Francisco)
Two separate shots side-by-side looking up toward the ceiling in the middle of the Guggenheim Museum in New York during James Turrell's light exhibition Aten Reign.
Light installation of the Luminale 2008 during the trade fair Light + Building in Frankfurt, Germany
Golden Waters light installation by Grimanesa Amorós
The Sydney Opera House during Vivid Sydney (2013).
Light art festival in Moscow, Russia
Tribute In Light, commemorating the September 11 destruction of the Twin Towers

Light art is an artistic discipline form in which (physical) light is the main, if not sole medium of creation. Uses of the term differ drastically in incongruence; definitions, if existing, vary in several aspects. Since light is the medium for visual perception, this way all visual art could be considered light art absurdly enough; but most pieces of art are valid and coherent without reflecting on this basic perceptual fact. Some approaches on these grounds also include into light art those forms of art where light is not any medium contributing to the artwork, but is depicted. Thus, luminism[1] may also refer to light art in the above sense, its previous usage point to painterly styles: either as an other label for the Caravaggisti in the baroque, or 19th and 20th centuries, fundamentally impressionist schools.

Concerning light as a medium of art, historically light art is confined to the use of artificial light in artworks. This culminates in the paradoxical situation in which machines producing light environments are not the artworks themselves, but the artwork is how they modulate their environments, based on the conventionally taken-for granted, thus solely reflected fact that light is what constitutes our environment.[2]

In the broad sense, of which Gerhard Auer stated in 2004:

"An uncertified term: Light Art had naturalised itself recently, without being fit for a term of either a genre, nor a style: in many symbiotic relations, light plays too many roles, and artificial light made itself only the source of inspiration instead of naming it in the countless isms that are drawing on it."[3]

In 2025 the researcher Sophya Acosta stated on a given interview about this discipline that:

"Light Art is an autonomous artistic discipline where light is the main material of creation, light is the language the artist chooses to create, and light is the message of the piece."

— Sophya Acosta, “El light art es la disciplina en la cual la luz es el material principal de creación, la luz es el lenguaje y el mensaje” Entrevista a la Lighting Designer, Sophya Acosta, https://www.interempresas.net/Iluminacion/615977-Entrevista-a-la-Lighting-Designer-Sophya-Acosta.html

This new perspective about the discipline implies that for a light art piece to exist what is required is the profound research of light as main material of creation regardless of its origin (natural light or artificial light).

Terms

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Closest may be the Lumino kinetic art as a comprehensive term in English, in use from the 1960s. Light Art is a fairly new construction, as a mirror translation from Dutch or German: Lichtkunst. The pioneers of light art, being devoted to it, felt the necessity to give it certain names in order to distinguish their art from any other genres of art like painting, sculpture or photography. Even calling the art of light 'the eighth art',[4] Thomas Wilfred termed his works Lumia from 1919 on. László Moholy-Nagy, in his numerous writings from the 1920s on, repeatedly published on 'light architecture' or 'light plays'.[5] Just before lumino-kinetics became widespread, Nicholas Schöffer labeled his own works first as 'spatial dynamic' then 'light dynamic' (luminodynamisme), from 1957 to end up in his 'time dynamic' phase. Frank Malina termed his artworks developed from 1956 on 'lumidyne systems'.[6]

History

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The first examples of modern light art appeared after the discovery of electric lighting made long-term lighting safe and affordable at the end of the 19th century. Light art, however, did not become a dedicated form of art until the late 20th century, in large part due to pioneering work begun in 1969, as part of an experimental program at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, by Robert Irwin and James Turrell.[7]

Modernism, Constructivism and the Bauhaus (1920–1935)

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See also: Modern art, Constructivism (art), and Bauhaus

Light has been used for architectural effect throughout human history. However, the modern concept of light art emerged with the development of artificial electric incandescent light sources and experimentation by modern artists of the Constructivist and Bauhaus movements.[8] "Prounenraum (Proun Room) (1923), by El Lissitzky, is considered by many art historians to be the first time an artist incorporated architectural lighting elements as a component integral to his work."[7][9] The first object-based light sculpture was the Light-Space Modulator (1922–1930), by László Moholy-Nagy.[10][11] Experimentation and innovations in theatrical light have often influenced other areas of light use such as light art. The development of Modernism and the electric light go hand-in-hand; the idea of the modern city with high-rises and electric light epitomizes this development.

All visual art uses light in some form, but in modern photography and motion pictures, use of light is especially important. However, with the invention of electrical artificial light, possibilities expanded and many artists began using light as the main form of expression, rather than solely as a vehicle for other forms of art. Constructivist Naum Gabo experimented with the transparent materiality light reflects on an object; his Linear Construction No. 1 (1943) provides an example of this.[12]

Large-scale displays of light require the collaboration of the authorities. An early example is the utilization of the majority of the searchlights of the German Air Force by Albert Speer for his Cathedral of Light, a feature of the Nazi Party rallies at Nuremberg between 1934 and 1938.[13]

Art critic Hilarie M. Sheets explains that "the interplay of dark and light has been a theme running from Greek and Roman sculpture to Renaissance painting to experimental film. But as technology advanced from the glow of the electric light bulb to the computer monitor, artists have been experimenting with actual light as material and subject."[14]

Light design, Lumino kinetic and op art (1940–1970)

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See also: Op art, Kinetic art, and Lumino kinetic art

The early experimental theater sets of Josef Svoboda were crafted using solely light and water vapor in the form of micro-droplets of water scrim-like fields of light. The Czech designer and scenographic engineer's use of light and light projections were influenced by Jindřich Honzl, who believed that "Light, which is the fourth dimension of stage poetry in space, is the most mobile and therefore the most theatrical of all material elements." In the 1960s he began using laser technology having received support from the Siemens Company. In the 70s he began incorporating holography in his sets, stating that "What attracted me to holography was the idea of volumetric light, without any concrete support, volumes floating in space"[15]

Categories of Light Art

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In 2022 the argentinian researchers Luciana Suppicich and Sophya Acosta purposed on the article "Light Art as Artistic support" [16] a categorization of Light Art pieces according to its format, compositive approach and the utilization of light during the creative process. In a latter version of the research, the authors expanded the categories.

CATEGORIZATION BY FORMAT

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This category centers its classification on how the core idea unfolds in space—that is, the physical materialization of the piece. Rather than focusing on construction or technical execution, it addresses what is presented to the audience: the enactment of the light-based concept developed by the artist or collective. Subcategories correspond to distinct approaches regarding how the artwork relates to, connects with, and intervenes within its surrounding physical environment.[17]

Light Objects

This refers to artworks composed of tangible elements of varying shapes and sizes that emit or produce light and luminous effects. Historically, several works within this format have been categorized as light sculptures. Conceptually, they can be understood as pieces aimed at giving physical form to light itself. This format allows for an in-depth exploration of light sources and diverse materials interacting with luminous stimuli. Light objects typically require dim or dark environments for display. Examples belonging to this category include Laurent Fort’s Dichrolight, as well as Nicolas Schöffer’s Microtemps 12 and Prisma.[17]

Large-Scale Installations

These are light interventions designed for expansive spaces. While they may consist of luminous objects, they are executed on a grand scale relative to human proportions. They are generally installed and exhibited outdoors, where the site's geography shapes how the work is interpreted. Frequently, they interact with or are affected by ambient day-and-night light conditions. Representative examples include Bruce Munro’s Field of Light and Manal AlDowayan’s Now You See Me, Now You Don’t.[17]

Immersive Installations

These pieces invite viewers to physically step inside the work, stimulating all human senses to an equal degree. By maintaining full control over visual stimuli, the artist opens new perceptual fields for the observer, occasionally prompting specific physiological responses. These proposals allow for the alteration or loss of spatial depth, orthogonality, and balance, calling for a contemplative viewer. COCO LAB’s White Canvas and KAZ Shirane’s Light Origami serve as clear examples illustrating this category.[17]

Interactive Installations

Interactive works require a subject or participant to trigger or activate the setup. In interactive art, the artist establishes the modifiable parameters and dictates the relationship between the viewer and the work. The presence of an accessible control mechanism introduces the possibility of action—or inaction—by the visitor. Consequently, these installations favor an active, willing participant. Works such as teamLab’s Transcending Boundaries, Artechhouse DC’s In Peak Bloom, and Jen Lewin Studio’s The Pool fall into this category.[17]

CATEGORIZATION BY ARTISTIC-COMPOSITIONAL TREND

Light Baroque

To define a Baroque light art, it is useful to briefly review key characteristics of the historic movement that took place during the 17th and 18th centuries across Europe and Latin America. Baroque art is fundamentally marked by a penchant for ostentation, exaggeration, and dramatic expression. Baroque artists focused heavily on form, space, color, and light, leaning toward grand scenographic effects heightened by strong chiaroscuro contrasts and a heightened sense of movement. Majesty and monumentality serve as defining features. Another core creative axis was the emotional impact on the observer. Within Light Art, a subset of works shares these exact traits: immersive pieces featuring a profusion of exposed light sources, subtle interplay between light and shadow, and an invitation for the public to saturate their senses in luminous grandeur. Three representative examples are Adela Andea’s Primordial Garden, Jason Rhoades’s Tijuanatanjierchandelier, and Soo Sunny Park’s Unwoven Light.[17]

Light Minimalism

Similarly, defining features of Minimalism can be applied to inform this classification. Emerging in the United States during the 1960s, contemporary Minimalism focuses on materiality while consciously avoiding emotional content and overt symbolism. This exploration prioritized prefabricated industrial materials, geometric simplicity, and repetition within the containment space. The movement naturally encompassed works experimenting with light as a physical medium. Key elements applied to Light Minimalism include geometric forms and patterns reduced to essential expressions, repetitive morphology, monochromatic color experiences, and industrial fabrication. Dan Flavin stands as the foundational reference point with his fluorescent fixture installations, alongside contemporary pieces like Nonotak’s Parallel 15 and Sophya Acosta and Luciana Suppicich’s 50/50 for Sophya Acosta Lighting Design Studio. [17]

PHENOMENOLOGICAL WORKS

This category encompasses works centered on concepts drawn from optics and the physics of light. Grounded in scientific principles, artists experiment with light phenomena such as refraction, reflection, and wave behavior. Technological developments have increasingly enabled the artistic study of physical light, bridging the gap between artists and technologists. The shared spirit of inquiry between art and science becomes deeply intertwined here: scientific research often serves as the catalyst for an artwork, while artistic experimentation can conversely prompt further study into physical phenomena. Key examples include Joachim Sauter and Ólafur Arnalds’s Symphonie Cinétique, Olafur Eliasson’s Your Shadow, and Luciana Suppicich’s Tragalux.[17]

CATEGORIZATION AS SENSORY/SENSORIAL WORKS

Unlike the previous category, this approach adopts an anthropocentric perspective centered on human perception. Works in this category explore the viewer's gaze from a biological vantage point, aiming to evoke specific physiological and sensory responses. Intuitivity suggests three physical dimensions of light: time, space, and color/color temperature. Subjective perception acts as a fourth dimension, within which multiple coexisting layers operate: the creator’s perceptual intent, the viewer's immediate experience, and the objective reality of the light event itself. Olafur Eliasson’s The Weather Project, Carlos Cruz-Diez’s Chromosaturation, and Yayoi Kusama’s Infinity Mirrors illustrate this category.[17]

Light art installations

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An example of a light art installation was that of artists Mel and Dorothy Tanner, who began adding light to their paintings and sculptures at their studio in Miami, Florida, in 1967. This was the same time period as that of Light and Space artists James Turrell and Robert Irwin in Los Angeles, on the opposite U.S. coast. The Tanners worked very closely for over 40 years until Mel Tanner died in 1993. Their main project was the creation of Lumonics that consists of their light sculptures, live projection, video, electronics and music as a total art installation. Author and art historian Michael Betancourt described this conceptual art as a Gesamtkunstwerk in his book The Lumonics Theater: The Art of Mel & Dorothy Tanner,[18] published in 2004. Dorothy Tanner, born in 1923, continued her light art from her studio in Denver, and co-directed the Lumonics School of Light Art with Marc Billard, until her death in 2020.

Another artist working in light installation is Grimanesa Amorós, who since the early 2000s has created large-scale, site-specific works using LED lighting, diffusion materials, and programmed lighting sequences. Her installations include Uros House (2011) in New York's Times Square, Golden Waters (2015) over the Arizona Canal in Scottsdale, Arizona, and Hedera (2018) at the Prospect Park band shell in Brooklyn.[19] The author and curator Judith K. Brodsky has discussed Amorós's public light works in the context of feminist and community-based art.[20]

Museums

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Many modern art museums include light sculptures and installations in their permanent and temporary collections. The Centre for International Light Art in Unna, Germany is currently the world's only museum dedicated exclusively to the collection and presentation of light art.[21][22]

The Light Art Museum in Eindhoven, Netherlands, another museum dedicated to the display of light art, closed on 5 December 2010[23] due to insufficient funding, but at the Strijp-S complex, one can see the Fakkel by Har Hollands, Daan Roosegaarde's Crystal as well as part of the light festival GLOW.[24][25]

Many well-known art museums, such as the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art and the Museum of Modern Art in New York, often have temporary light art exhibits and installations in their galleries.[26][27][28]

Light festivals

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Light art festivals are public events that transform urban environments with large-scale light-based artworks, including sculptures, projections, and interactive installations. The modern era of light art festivals is often traced to the Festival of Lights (Lyon) in France, first held in 1999,[29] which inspired similar events worldwide. Over the following decades, light art festivals became an important platform for artists to create temporary, site-specific works that combine artistic vision with technological innovation. Many festivals incorporate themes such as cultural heritage, community engagement, and environmental awareness.[citation needed]

Notable examples include the Vivid Sydney festival in Australia, launched in 2009,[30] the i Light Marina Bay festival in Singapore (Asia's only sustainable light festival, launched in 2010),[31] the Signal Festival in Prague, the Ghent Light Festival in Belgium, and Noor Riyadh in Saudi Arabia—one of the largest light art festivals in the world, attracting over 3 million visitors in 2024.[29] Light art festivals have grown into a distinct art form, merging contemporary artistic practice with advances in lighting technology, and are now celebrated in cities across the globe.[32]

See also: Festival of Lights (Lyon), Vivid Sydney, Light + Building, GLOW Festival Eindhoven, Light Art Biennale Austria 2010, Lux Helsinki, i Light Marina Bay, Lichtstadt Feldkirch, and Llum BCN

Artists working with light

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Other artistic disciplines that use light as an element

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Projection mapping

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See also: Projection mapping

Closely associated art forms are projectors, 3-D projection, multi-media, video art, and photography where light technology projects images rather than using light as the medium. Large light festivals and events have helped to develop the use of light on large canvases such as architectural facades, building projections, the flood lighting of buildings with colour, and interactive media facades. These forms of light art have their antecedents in new media-based, video art and photography which are sometimes classified as light art since light and movement are important to the work.[citation needed][35]

Digital graffiti

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See also: Digital graffiti

Also included in the light art genre is the so-called light graffiti including projection onto buildings,[35] arrangement of lighted windows in buildings, and painting with hand-held lights onto film using time exposure.[36]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Concise Oxford Dictionary of Art Terms
  2. ^ More Light! Light Environments, New Budapest Gallery, 2015. Cat. pp5-6
  3. ^ Auer, Gerhard: Das Lichtwerk im Zeitalter seiner technischen reproduzierbarkeit, in: Brockhaus, Chistoph 2004. Stadtlicht – Lichtkunst. Stiftung Wilhelm Lehmbruck Museum – Zentrum Internationaler Skulptur, Duisburg, Wienand, Köln, p66
  4. ^ Finckh, Gerhard 1993. Licht-Räume (cat.) Museum Folkwang, Essen; Bauhaus, Dessau, p16
  5. ^ Weibel 2005. p220
  6. ^ Frank J. Malina: Kinetic painting: the Lumidyne System, Leonardo, Vol. 1, pp. 25-33; winter 1968
  7. ^ a b Glenn Shrum, Light Art Matters - A closer look at the ideas behind the work
  8. ^ Weibel, Peter; Jensen, Gregor, eds. (2006). Lichkunst aus Kunstlicht: Licht als Medium der Kunst im 20. und 21. Jahrhundert. Distributed Art Pub Incorporated. ISBN 978-3-7757-1774-8. Archived from the original on 15 December 2017. Retrieved 18 August 2009. Catalog for an exhibition "Light Art from Artificial Light: Light as the Medium of Art in the 20th and 21st Centuries" at the Zentrum fur Kunst und Medientechnologie in Karlsruhe, Germany (19 November 2005 – 1 May 2006).
  9. ^ "Replicas and Reconstructions in Twentieth-Century Art: El Lissitzky, Prounenraum 1923, reconstruction 1971". Tate. Retrieved 31 July 2016.
  10. ^ "László Moholy-Nagy, Tate bio". tate.org. Archived from the original on 13 June 2008.
  11. ^ "Light Art". Kunstlexikon. Hatje Cantz Verlag. 5 February 2005. Archived from the original on 20 May 2013. Retrieved 17 January 2011.
  12. ^ "Linear Construction No. 1 1942–3". Tate. Retrieved 31 July 2016.
  13. ^ Speer, Albert (1970). Inside the Third Reich. New York and Toronto: Macmillan. p. 59. Retrieved 30 August 2020.
  14. ^ Sheets, Hilarie M. "Waves of Light." ARTnews Mar. 2007: 131-33. ARTnews. Print. Web. 1 Feb. 2012. http://www.artnews.com/2007/03/01/waves-of-light/.
  15. ^ Richier, Christine (2020). "Svoboda and lighting design: fragments of a light discourse". Theater and Performance Design. 6 (3). doi:10.1080/23322551.2020.1848200.
  16. ^ Report, Staff (14 May 2022). "Light Art as Artistic Support". designinglighting. Retrieved 26 August 2026.
  17. ^ a b c d e f g h i Acosta, Sophya (1 January 2023). "El Light Art como soporte artístico". Libro de Actas XVI Luxamerica.
  18. ^ Betancourt, Michael (2004). The Lumonics Theater: The Art of Mel and Dorothy Tanner. Maryland, United States: Wildside Press. p. 15. ISBN 0-8095-1193-2.
  19. ^ "Sheep Flock to Times Square". ArtsBeat. The New York Times. 1 March 2011. Retrieved 13 July 2026.
  20. ^ Brodsky, Judith K. (2022). Dismantling the Patriarchy, Bit by Bit: Art, Feminism, and Digital Technology. London: Bloomsbury. pp. 193–194. ISBN 1-350-24350-7.
  21. ^ "Take An Electrifying Look Inside The World's First Light Art Museum". Vice Media Inc. 16 July 2014. Retrieved 31 July 2016.
  22. ^ "The World's Only Light Art Museum Grants the International Light Art Award 2015". International Year of Light 2015 - Blog. Archived from the original on 22 October 2016. Retrieved 31 July 2016.
  23. ^ "Closed: The Light Art Museum in Eindhoven", Luminapolis: The World of Lighting, 28 November 2010, archived from the original on 15 August 2017, retrieved 17 January 2016.
  24. ^ 'Herbeleef Glow Eindhoven: Routes en hoogtepunten door de jaren heen', Eindhovens Dagblad.
  25. ^ 'Licht zien, voelen en zelfs opslaan op Glow Next', Eindhovens Dagblad.
  26. ^ "Jim Campbell". SFMOMA. Retrieved 10 August 2016.
  27. ^ "Take your time: Olafur Eliasson | MoMA". The Museum of Modern Art. Retrieved 10 August 2016.
  28. ^ "SFMOMA CELEBRATES ARTIST LEO VILLAREAL IN ANTICIPATION OF LIGHT INSTALLATION ON BAY BRIDGE". SFMOMA. Retrieved 10 August 2016.
  29. ^ a b [Add reference here]
  30. ^ [27]
  31. ^ [28]
  32. ^ [29]
  33. ^ Seoul studio Kimchi and Chips sculpt with sunlight to create HALO. Designboom, July 2018
  34. ^ How Lachlan Turczan reshapes matter by bending light and water in atmospheric installations. Designboom, April 2026
  35. ^ a b "Architectural Light Graffiti: Image Projection Bombing". Webist Media. 7 September 2007. Retrieved 31 July 2016.
  36. ^ "Luminaries: 20 Light Graffiti Artists & Photographers". Webist Media. 7 December 2008. Retrieved 31 July 2016.

Further reading

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  • Jansen, J. (1991), 'Het Electrisch': van lamplicht tot lichtsculptuur, Museum het Princessehof, ISBN 978-90-71588-10-5.
  • Tahara, Keiichi (2001), Light, Sculpture, Photography, Editions Assouline, ISBN 978-2-84323-262-6.
  • JanLeonardo Woellert & Joerg Miedza - Painting With Light: Light Art Performance Photography, Rocky Nook; 1 Edition (10 April 2011), ISBN 978-1933952741.
  • Crisafulli, Fabrizio. 2013. Active Light. Issues of Light in Contemporary Theatre, Dublin: Artdigiland. ISBN 978-1494786922.
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